Covering machine for electrical conductors and the like



Feb. 5, 1935. o. BALLERT r:r Al 1,939,660

COVERING MACHINE FOR ELECTRICAL CONDUCTORS AND THE LIKE Filed July 2:5,1932 Patented Feb. 5, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE COVERING MACHINEFOR ELECTRICAL CONDUCTORS AND THE LIKE In Germany 2 Claims.

The present invention relates to a covering machine adapted to coverelectrical conductors or wires and particularly fine wires with silk,cotton or similar insulation. The hitherto known covering machines, ofthis kind are belt-driven machines comprising several sets of coveringdevices, which are mounted in a frame and are driven from a main drivingshaft by means of belts. When machines of this known construction areused, the covering material is inaccurately laid, because the coveringsets of which a machine is composed, on account of the slipping of thebelts and from other causes, will never run uniformly. A furtherdisadvantage of a belt driving arrangement is that the highestpracticable working velocity of the covering heads amounts only to about3000 revolutions per minute, wherefore the cfiioiency of the machines islow.

It is also known to drive the covering heads positively by means oftoothed wheels operated from the main shaft. However, this arrangementalso has serious disadvantages, being very noisy in operation, andattended by difiiculties in lubricating and packing the elements.Devices of this kind therefore rapidly wear out.

The main object of the present invention is to overcome the above nameddisadvantages.

According to the present invention, the machine comprises a unitaryhousing in which is mounted a motor, a plurality of covering heads,

a supply reel for delivering uncovered conductor to the heads, a windingreel receiving covered conductor from the heads, and non-slip resilientfrictional driving means between the motor and the covering heads andreels. A great number of covering sets can therefore be mounted adjacenteach other on a working table, whereby the entire surface of the tableis utilized and a compact structure is formed, which may be readilycontrolled and operated by a single person. In comparison with knowncovering machines the machines according to the invention have amoderate height and are upon the whole of an exceedingly compactconstruction, and all parts to be controlled lie within a narrow visualfield, so that a single person, without being overworked, is able tocontrol a much greater number of machines than hitherto.

Another advantage of the invention is that the nonslip resilientfrictional drive of the covering heads makes it possible to increase thenumber of revolutions of these heads and. consequently the efiiciency ofthe machine, to practically any desired value, without introducing dis-August 3, 1931 turbances, the only limiting factor to be taken intoconsideration being the tensile strength of the covering thread.

Still another feature of the invention consists in this, that the lengthof wire between the reels and upon which the machine acts, in contrastto the known devices is very short. This is a very important advantage,since a great length of wire permits the covering thread to be easilystretched, so that a thread of non-uniform thickness is applied to thewire and an inaccurately laid covering is obtained.

A further advantage of the invention consists in that the wire,irrespective of the diameter of the supply reels, and the take-up reelsalways will be drawn off the supply reel and. wound upon the take-upreel with constant and uniform velocity. The wire will therefore alsotravel with constant and uniform velocity through the covering heads.This effect, according to the invention, is caused by keeping the beltoperating the reels in engagement with the periphery of both reels.Since the belt and the covering heads are driven by the same motor, therelation between the speeds of the covering heads and the speed oftravel of the wire will always be the same.

A constructional form of the invention is shown by way of example in theaccompanying drawing.

Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation of a covering machine according totheinvention, showing also in broken lines certain details which normallywould not appear in the section.

Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation of the same machine taken at rightangles to that of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on line ab in Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on line 0-11 in Fig. 2.

1 denotes the driving motor, shown as an electric motor. To the upperend 1a of the motor shaft a disc 2 is fixed, the periphery of which isequipped with a layer 20. of rubber or other resilient material. Themotor 1 is mounted in a tubular housing 3 into which it is accuratelyfitted, the housing 3 being formed with an internal flange 3a on whichthe lower edge of the motor casing rests. The motor casing can be lockedagainst rotation within the housing 3 by screws or the like. On one sideof the housing 3 a support member 4 for the covering heads 5 and 6 andthe driving discs 5a and 6a of the same is arranged. Within this memberthe intermediate transmission shaft 7 with the elastic driving discs 7aand 7b is also mounted. Thecovering heads 5 and 6, the driving discs 5aand 6a of the same and the driving discs 7a, and 7b are eccentricallymounted in adjustable and lockable sleeves 12a and 12b. The adjustingmeans of these sleeves are of known kind and are therefore not shown inthe drawing. The eccentric mounting makes it possible to engage theindividual driving discs with each other and to regulate the contactpressure. The intermediate transmission shaft '7 is flexible and issurrounded by a protective tube 13. In the lower end of the casing 3 aseparate chamber 8 for a worm gear 8a, 8b is arranged. 'The shaft 16 ofthe worm 8b is connected to the lower end 11) of the motor shaft bymeans of a coupling 10. The endless belt 9 is driven from thesaid wormgear. The driving pulley 9a consists of a plurality of concentricallyarranged rings, as indicated in Fig. 4. By removing or adding such ringsthe peripheral velocity of travel of the thread may be regulated atwill. The driving belt 9 travels over rollers 14 which are carried by alever or rod 15.

The lever 15 is pivotally arranged on the shaft 16 of the worm 8b and isinfluenced by a weight I 1'7, which is mounted on a bell crank 18. Thisbell crank is at 19 pivotally arranged on the casing 3 and the free arm20 of the same is equipped with an adjusting screw 21 which abutsagainst a projecting part of the lever 15. The upper end of the machinecasing is closed by a cap 11 on the outside of which the upper guideroller 120 for the Wire to be covered is arranged. The correspondinglower guide roller is mounted on the casing 3. The support member 4 alsoserves as support for the reel 22 carrying the wire to be coated and thereel 23 on which the covered wire is wound.

The machine operates in the following manner:

The motor 1 rotates the disc 2 and simultaneously the worm gear 8a, 8b.The disc 2 has a nonslip resilient frictional contact with the drivingdiscs 5a and 7a, the former of which operates the upper covering head 5,whereas the latter operates the flexible shaft '7 and the disc 7b, whichdisc '77), by frictional engagement, is coupled to the disc 6a of thelower covering head 6. The shaft 16 of the worm 87; rotates the beltpulley 9a. The belt 9 travels over the guide rollers 14 and under theinfluence of the weight 17 (or'an equivalent spring) yieldingly engagesthe periphery of the reels 22 and 23, which thereby are rotated, so thatthe wire on the same is moved over the guide rollers 12c, 12d andthrough the spinning heads 5, 6. The wire is continuously covered withinsulating matter by means of the known mechanism (not shown) in thespinning heads, adapted to wind the threads or the like in oppositedirections.

We claim:--

1. A machine for covering electrical conductors comprising: a housing, amotor supported therein with its shaft vertical. a plurality of coveringheads supported in vertical alignment by the housing, resilient surfacedfriction disks providing a non-slip drive between the motor shaft andthe covering heads, a supply reel for uncovered conductor and a windingreel for covered conductor both supported by the housing, a horizontalshaft gear driven by the motor, a lever pivoted on said shaft, saidlever and shaft carrying guiding and tensioning rollers, a. beltsupported and tensioned by said rollers, and means for biasing saidlever into a position forcing said belt into peripheral contact withboth reels.

2. A machine according to claim 1, in which means are provided foradjusting the pressure of the belt against the reels.

OTTO BALLERT. ERHARD WENDT.

